Half of children helped by Barnardos live in emergency accommodation, charity says
Barnardos says that half of the children accessing their services in Dublin this year are living in emergency accommodation.
To help them, and many others around the country, the charity are today launching their Christmas appeal.
So far this year, they have helped over 15,000 children, and they expect that number to increase in the run up to Christmas.
Director of Fundraising at Barnardos, Mary Gamble, says working with children in emergency accommodation is becoming more and more common.
"In some of the centres we work, particularly in Dublin, 50% of the children will be living in hotel rooms - and that is something we have never seen before.
"Barnardos is not a homeless organisation, it is not a housing agency, we don't build homes.
"We are seeing the impact of this in the front-line, in our services every single day."
